Tabatinga

Tabatinga on the map of the Amazon

Tabatinga is a city in the Brazilian state of Amazonas, with over 50,000 inhabitants.

Geography

The municipal area covers 3342 km ². The city is located in the Amazon, which is still called Rio Solimões here, right in the tri-border region between Brazil, Colombia and Peru (also called Tres Fronteras ). North of Tabatinga, on the same shore, is the Colombian border town of Leticia, the southernmost city in Colombia. The border runs along the Avenida da Amizade ( de: Street of friendship).

History

Tabatinga da Costa Teives founded as a border post in the first half of the 18th century by Fernando to protect the then Spanish-Portuguese border.

Until 1981 Tabatinga was part of the municipality Benjamin Constant. Through a constitutional amendment Tabatinga was an independent parish.

Origin of the name

Tabatinga is a word from the language of the Tupi and means white clay or white clay that have probably found in the riverbed of the Indians. In Tupi- Guarani the word means small house.

Economy

The main economic activities are fishing and agriculture. The giant catfish is the most commonly caught species. Agricultural products are in the majority bananas and cassava.

To accelerate the development of the border region, was created in collaboration with the Colombian government in December 1989, the free trade zone Tabatinga.

Tourism and Transport

Tourism began to develop slowly, as Tabatinga, surrounded by dense jungle, by land is not available. Tourists, nearly half of them Colombians, are mainly interested in exploring the rainforest and river trips.

Since Tabatinga and Leticia are directly adjoin each other and practically grown together, a cross-border tourism has emerged. Many visitors from the U.S. and Europe take day trips to the National Park Amacayacu, which lies about 60 km north of Leticia. For these trips a Colombian consulate was built in the city.

Tabatinga is accessible by air, the municipal airport, the Aeroporto Internacional de Tabatinga, located from the city center two miles south.

There are regular ferry and boat connections to Manaus, speedboats can reach the Peruvian Iquitos.

There is no public transport. As a means of motorcycle taxis are very popular.

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